


Falling for the Witch

by lonesomewriter



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Fluff, M/M, Witches, knight!Otabek, this has very little witchy stuff in it tbh, witch!Yuri
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-29
Updated: 2018-10-29
Packaged: 2019-08-09 18:38:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16455221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lonesomewriter/pseuds/lonesomewriter
Summary: Knight Otabek Altin gets sent on a mission to find the witch living in the deep dark woods and make them undo the curse they cast on his home village. But what he finds in the woods is certainly not the wicked witch of the fairytales...“You’re beautiful,” Otabek croaked, his voice more hoarse than he’d imagined. He guessed he was thirsty after all. But before he managed to ask for water, he froze as he saw a deep blush spreading down the boy’s face, as if he was embarrassed by what Otabek had said.But Otabek wasn’t going to take his words back, as for him, they were the truth.“Don’t say stupid shit like that!” the boy shrieked, failing to hide the blush by tilting his head so that the blond waves covered half of his face. “I asked you if you were hungry.”





	Falling for the Witch

**Author's Note:**

> My work for the YOI Spooky Week Day 2: Witches/ ~~Warlocks~~.
> 
> I apologise for all mistakes, English is not my first language and this isn't beta'ed.

It had been a beautiful, sunny morning of early summer when the curse had hit the village. Otabek remembered how the other knights had woken him up to see the green cloud of mist spreading from the deep woods to cover the fields, gaining speed while it devoured all the buildings and livestock it touched. In no time the whole village was covered in thick smoke, so dense one couldn’t see their palm if they stretched their hand straight forward.

The smoke took better part of the day to dissipate, and at first it seemed as if nothing had happened. But in the following week when the oats shrivelled down and the cattle began to die, the reality hit the village.

Otabek and a few carefully selected knights had been ordered by the King himself to find cure for the curse, and so the party had begun their journey into the deep, dark woods. The King’s order had been clear; go find the witch living deep in the dark woods, and make them undo the curse they’ve cast over the village, no matter the cost. Or that’s what Otabek had thought a week before when he’d begun his mission.

He knew better now, for he was the only one left of the group of five men that had been sent to deliver the message to the witch. He knew that he, too, would have to end his mission soon if the witch wasn’t willing to show themself.

On the first night, two of the men had fallen mysteriously sick. Otabek had send them both back to the village before the others could catch whatever it was that had caused the fever and furiously red dots all over their bodies. He had asked them to sent men for backup, but none had come.

By the fourth day, one of the men had died in his sleep. Otabek’s childhood friend, Seung-gil Lee, had found the body of the young boy when he’d went to wake him up for his watch. Otabek had been shaken by the death, not understanding how a perfectly healthy man on his first time in duty could just pass away like a fragile elder.

On top of all the struggle, the more days passed, the quicker their food had begun to rot. Otabek had packed dried ham, bread and ale twice the needed amount, but by the fifth day they had nothing edible left.

It was on the sixth day, when it was only him and Lee left, that Otabek had understood they were never going to get to the witch. He had seen the look on Lee’s face and braced himself for the bad news when his friend had opened his mouth that morning.

“I’m going back to the village,” Lee had said, his face as unreadable as ever. Otabek hadn’t known what he could’ve said to stop him, if there even had been anything. So he had just nodded and let him go, not even asking what had caused him to leave now.

He had watched his friend’s receding back to the point he had completely disappeared behind the thick oak trees. He had stayed still for many minutes before a soft wind had brushed through his hair softly, reminding him that there was still a sliver of hope that he’d find the witch.

It had been almost two weeks now, and Otabek was starving. It was still a couple of hours before nightfall, which wouldn’t have been a problem as the autumn had only begun, if it wasn’t for the thick leaves blocking the sun quite effectively. He hadn’t seen a trace of animals or any life for the matter for the past few days, and he had began to think that maybe he, too, should just give up and head back.

There was the stubborn side of him that made him move forward, ignoring the churning sound of his empty stomach as he pushed through the trees. He knew he couldn’t bear seeing the gutted faces of the villagers if he came back empty handed, even if the other option was to die. His little sister had been devastated to see him go, but had stopped crying when Otabek had explained the severity of the situation to her.

He couldn’t fail her now.

Otabek sighed, and walked his horse deeper to the forest. The path he was following was fading away underneath the growing vegetation, and deep down Otabek knew what that meant. He chose to not stare at the road as long as he could, even though trying to ignore the problem wasn’t a solution in the slightest.

His stomach growled loudly, and Otabek clasped his hand to rub it gently, the heavy armour holding him back from soothing himself properly. He needed food, the quicker the better. But looking around, he knew there was no way anything consumable would be in the range of two days’ journey around him.

He felt more than saw his mare collapsing to the ground with a loud thud, and Otabek couldn’t even gather enough energy to yelp as his companion took him down with him. Laying on the grass, Otabek wondered if this would be the place where he’d die.

There was no way he could make it out there alive anymore. It had been stupid of him to continue after Lee had left. He cursed his stubbornness, cursed the forest for not providing any help, but most deeply he cursed the witch for being so selfish as to cause all this trouble in the first place.

As he closed his eyes and drifted to sleep for possibly the last time in his life, Otabek hoped his sister wouldn’t cry too much over him.

*

“You stink,” a loud voice boomed from somewhere above Otabek, but he had no intention to find out who it belonged to. He felt warm and comfortable, all the traces of the hunger from before having left his body as by a miracle.

“I was talking to you, asshole!” the voice was getting louder and more irritated, but Otabek didn’t open his eyes. “I know you’re awake!”

Otabek pried one eye open, and was nearly blinded by the ray of sunshine that hit his face from behind an open window. He stood up, realising he was sleeping in a bed, laying on top of what felt like a real feather mattress. He stared at the soft fabric surrounding him so keenly he didn’t see the slim boy sitting at the edge of the bed until he hissed at him.

Otabek looked up to see a boy, maybe sixteen years old, with blonde hair surrounding his pale and beautiful face. His eyes were green like the emeralds in the king’s crown, and Otabek found himself drowning inside the shimmering colour. This boy looks like an angel, he thought, and for a second wondered whether he had died after all and gone to heaven.

The illusion was shattered, however, when the boy’s face twisted to one of utter disgustment and anger, and he began shouting at Otabek. Otabek turned his head away, having no idea what the boy was saying as he was too perplexed by his surroundings to concentrate on listening.

The room was quite small, but had high roof with lots of shelves rising from the floor up to the ceiling, and on them were more books than Otabek had ever seen in his entire life. From the ceiling, multiple strains hanged on top of Otabek’s head, and on the strains were dried herbs and flowers among with variety of all sorts of roots Otabek couldn’t name if his life depended on it.

All in all, it was a cozy room, illuminated by the bright summer sunshine that poured inside from both the window and the small trapdoor on the ceiling. Otabek liked the atmosphere, and hoped he himself could be able to live in a place like this in the future.

“Are you fucking deaf or something?” the boy finally snapped Otabek out of his daze, and he turned to look at him once more. The boy somehow managed to look beautiful even when he was shaking from irritation

“You’re beautiful,” Otabek croaked, his voice more hoarse than he’d imagined. He guessed he was thirsty after all. But before he managed to ask for water, he froze as he saw a deep blush spreading down the boy’s face, as if he was embarrassed by what Otabek had said.

But Otabek wasn’t going to take his words back, as for him, they were the truth.

“Don’t say stupid shit like that!” the boy shrieked, failing to hide the blush by tilting his head so that the blond waves covered half of his face. “I asked you if you were hungry.”

Otabek wasn’t hungry, or so he thought. He was about to say so, but his stomach chose that moment to let out the deepest growl possible. Otabek looked down at his lap, only now realising he wasn’t wearing his armor, but some white, loose shirt. He looked at the boy once again, his face blank as he noticed the boy had been staring at him.

The blond quickly averted his eyes, which made Otabek smile.

“Where are my clothes?”

“I washed them. Your armour I put in the stable with your horse,” the boy answered, tilting his head softly as he eyed Otabek with sparkling eyes. “You were nearly gone for good when I found you. What on Earth were you doing this deep in the woods with no food? Do you want to die?”

Otabek stared intensely at the boy as he talked, mesmerized by how ethereal he looked. Only when the silence fell heavy between them he realised he’d been asked a question. He blushed slightly before clearing his throat and tearing his eyes off the blond boy. “I was actually on a mission. There’s this witch who supposedly lives somewhere around here, and I need to find them. My village is under the witch’s curse, and if they don’t break the curse before winter all the people will die, even the little children.”

“But why come alone?” the boy sounded confused, and Otabek would’ve smiled if the memory of his companion dying wasn’t so fresh in his mind.

“I didn’t. I had four more men with me, three of which returned home.”

The boy’s eyes widened with understanding, and Otabek was grateful he didn’t have to explain to him how he’d had to bury the small boy, not much older than the blond, with his own hands.

“Well, I haven’t seen any witches around here,” the boy said and stood up from the bed, making the mattress rise softly. Otabek noticed how every movement from the boy looked fluid as if he was surrounded by some invisible water all the time. Even his hair flowed unnaturally smoothly, the golden rays of light making him look celestial. “I’ll go prepare you a meal. Stay here.”

Otabek watched him leave, waited a minute, and rose from the bed. He knew he was feeling well enough to leave the bed, and was curious to see the rest of the house. Deep down he knew he should be more concerned of the boy and his mission, but he found himself distracted by the house and it’s resident.

He slid out of the bedroom, and looked around the slightly larger space he’d stepped into. It seemed like there were only two rooms in the whole house, and Otabek saw the blond at the far end of the living room. He was standing behind a table filled with books and a huge cauldron, his back turned to Otabek as he hummed softly and cut something green to pieces with a huge knife.

The whole house was filled with knick knacks and trinkets, but Otabek found it comforting in a way. He had never had too much belongings, having grown up in a huge family of farmers. It was luck his parents had had enough to feed him and his siblings.

There was a smell of herbs and old books in the air, which reminded Otabek slightly of his grandfather’s store. He had sold parchment and quills along with a few carefully picked books in his small house down the main road, and Otabek had always played inside the store when he’d been little.

Otabek stepped further into the room, letting his hands fondle the covers of the books gently. He saw a sofa nearly buried underneath the piles of paper and books, and helped himself to sit in the corner while he picked up some book on random. The cover was worn out and Otabek had no idea what the title meant, but he opened it nonetheless.

He had never been much of a reader, only knowing the most basic phrases so that he could deliver messages when necessary, but it didn’t take him long to realise the book he’d picked was written in a foreign language. It had lots of pictures, and Otabek amused himself with it for a while.

The book was some sort of educational guide book to different herbs, and Otabek found it reasonable judging by the amount of dried plants he’d seen inside the bedroom. He put the book down, deciding he’d want to check on his horse while the sun was still up.

He stole a glance at the blond boy, who was still focused on making the meal. He looked peaceful, his image fitting right into the room like he was painted on it. Otabek guessed he must’ve lived here for his whole life. Something tugged at his heartstrings when he wondered if the boy had any friends, or whether he lived completely on his own. 

He opened the front door with a sigh, leaving the boy behind. The house was located in a small clearance filled with flowers and tall grass, and Otabek shivered with how beautiful the place was. He closed his eyes and basked in the warm sun, the flowery smell of the ground filling his nostrils, and he felt more tranquil than he had for the past years.

“I told you to wait in bed,” the boy had appeared behind him, but Otabek wasn’t startled. He smiled and opened his eyes slowly, the sight of the blond in front of him making his heart flutter.

“It’s very beautiful in here,” Otabek said, fixing his eyes on the boy. His cheeks were slightly pink and eyes wide, and Otabek hummed softly. “It’s no wonder you’d want to live here.”

“Come eat before it gets cold,” the boy said, his voice small as he turned back towards the house. The sun went behind a cloud, and Otabek shivered with the sudden chill. He promised himself he’d go check on his horse soon, and followed the boy inside.

He ate the chicken soup in silence, looking intently at the boy who sat beside him, nose buried in a book. Otabek found himself yet again wondering if the boy lived here all alone.

“Argh,” the boy snapped and shut the book with such a force Otabek was afraid the covers would fall off. The boy turned his eyes to Otabek, and there was fire behind them. “Could you just stop fucking thinking so loudly? It’s making it hard to concentrate here!”

“What’s your name?”

The boy looked confused by the question, his eyebrows knitted together and mouth slightly agape. When he realised Otabek was staring, he quickly fixed his expression to one of annoyed, but answered nonetheless. “Yuri Plisetsky. What’s it to you?”

“I just wanted to know,” Otabek shrugged, the ability to put a name to the face in front of him tickling inside him. “I’m Otabek. Otabek Altin.”

Yuri nodded and turned back to his book. Otabek wanted to desperately get to know the boy better, and tormented his brain to figure something to talk about. Why had he never been interested in honing his conversational skills?

“Do you live here alone?” Otabek asked in a lack of anything better to discuss, and hoped Yuri would keep the conversation going. He saw something flash behind the boy’s eyes, and was slightly taken aback when Yuri bared his teeth and growled.

“So what if I did? It’s none of your fucking business.” His voice shook with emotions, and Otabek noticed his tense shoulders and how he avoided looking at him. But before Otabek could apologise for prying, Yuri stood up from the table, covering his face with his hair as he walked out of the tiny kitchen.

Otabek stared at his retreating back, his chest tightening with the confusion that was the blond boy. His eyes dropped back to the bowl, and Otabek found his appetite gone.

He sighed and went after the boy, knowing his conscience wouldn’t allow him to continue eating until he’d properly apologised. He took a quick glance at the living room before stepping outside, where the last rays of sunshine colored the clearance with hues of orange and pink.

He walked around the house until he found Yuri crouched over what looked like a flower bed next to a stony well. His back was arched, and as Otabek slowly crept closer, he realised his whole body was shaking.

Otabek stopped before he reached the boy. The flower bed was breathtaking, dozens of flowers Otabek couldn’t name bursting from the ground with such enthusiasm it was clear they’d been cared for with a kind heart. All the shades of red and purple with the couple white and blue roses balanced out perfectly, and Otabek felt calm just looking at it, breathing in the sugary scent.

He inched closer to Yuri, letting his presence known by brushing the younger boy’s hair softly.

“It were the boys from the village,” Yuri said quietly, his voice strained. “I don’t know why they did it, but I guess their motives don’t really matter. I was out gathering some mugworts for my grandfather that day, he had asked me to go… When I came back he - he was -,”

Otabek dropped to his knees, wrapping his arms around Yuri as the blond broke into ugly sobs. The sound shattered Otabek’s heart to pieces, and all he could do was to whisper small comforting words to the boy’s ears, not knowing if the other even heard them.

“I tried to save him,” Yuri’s voice was thick from the crying, but he somehow kept pushing the words out. “I tried fucking everything, but it was already too late. There was nothing I could do for the last months except to ease his pain.”

Otabek knew he couldn’t possibly understand what it felt like to lose someone so important, to be there to see the final moments, knowing there was nothing to do to prevent the inevitable. He shuddered with the thought of losing anyone in his family. All he knew was that pain would be unbearable.

“If I’d only known what the boys did to him, I might have had a chance,” it was hard for Otabek to hear the emotions in Yuri’s voice and not to tear up himself. He rubbed circles in the boy’s back, remembering how it had always soothed him when his mother had done it to him. As Yuri melted against him, Otabek came to a realisation.

“You’re the witch that cursed my village,” he stated calmly. He wasn’t even surprised when he felt no anger at all towards the boy, only deep sympathy for all the pain he had suffered The world could be a cruel place, and it was no wonder he had done his everything to safe the person who meant the most to him. After all, Otabek had done the same over and over again.

“So what if I am?” -Yuri disentangled himself from Otabek’s arms, creating a distance between them that felt miles long. Otabek felt strong urge to chase him back, to wrap his arms around him and embrace him tightly, to tell him it was okay to feel. But he didn’t do any of that, just let himself watch as the blond boy curled more into himself, not knowing what to do with all these conflicting emotions.

“Can you -,” Otabek paused, thinking long and hard how he should phrase the question he thought both of them knew was coming. “Is there any way the curse can be broken?”

When the witch said nothing, Otabek grabbed his hand to his palm and stroked the knuckles softly. “Is there any hope for my people?”

“The curse is already broken,” Yuri said in such a small voice Otabek wasn’t sure he had heard it right. He lifted his face to look at Otabek, and the lack of emotions behind the green eyes broke his heart yet again. “I made it so that it would break the second grandpa got better, or if he -”

Yuri drew a long, unsteady breath and buried his face in his hands again. “If you return home now, there’s a great harvest waiting for you.”

Otabek ignored Yuri’s words, wanting to clear all the questions before he could completely forgive the witch for cursing his entire village. “Did you curse the woods too?”

“Of course not! Why would I do that?”

“Some of my travelling companions caught a strange illness on our way here. You’re sure you had nothing to do with that?” Otabek knew the answer before he asked the question, but wanted Yuri to confirm he had nothing to do with what had happened to his friends.

“I have no idea what happened to them,” Yuri said, his voice even. “It could be they suffered the aftermath of the curse breaking, but I swear I didn’t plan that. Sometimes magic doesn’t work the way you want it to, especially if your emotions aren’t in control.”

Otabek nodded, satisfied with the answer. Now that he knew what had happened, he knew he could never be angry at Yuri. “What if I don’t want to go home?”

The witch’s eyes flared when he snapped his head up, and Otabek’s breath escaped his lungs. The boy’s face was red and swollen from all the crying, but his eyes sparkled like gemstones amidst it all, the fury behind them making him look like a real warrior.

“The fuck do I care what you do or do not want to do!” the witch spat, trying to stand up, but Otabek took his hand to his own, yanking him to his lap. The boy yelped in surprise, and Otabek smiled as he pressed him closer to his body.

“I think we both need each other,” Otabek whispered, his heart beating fast in his chest, both from the excitement and the fear of being hexed to the spot. But fortunately for him, the witch relaxed against him.

“I don’t need anybody,” the boy said, and Otabek chuckled.

“But I do,” he said, and it was the truth. Knowing what had caused the curse in the first place, knowing the witch wasn’t to blame for it, made Otabek’s heart flutter. “So, do you want to be my friend or not?”

Yur tensed in his arms, and looked up to meet Otabek’s eyes. They stared at each other for a long minute before the boy finally averted his eyes in defeat. “Why would you even want to be my friend? I cursed your village, after all.”

“Because I like you,” Otabek said, smiling softly at the slight blush in the witch’s cheeks. “And because I know you’re not an evil witch who curses people just for fun. And because it would pain me to leave you here alone. No one should ever need to be alone.”

“Shut up already,” Yuri’s face was beet red, and he buried himself in Otabek’s chest when the knight laughed at his expression. “Just shut up.”

Otabek chuckled softly, and pressed the witch closer to his body. Yuri felt so small and fragile against his body, and Otabek decided then and there he would never let go of the young boy. He would be his guardian to the end of the days, if Yuri would only let him… 

“What are you thinking about?” Yuri asked when they’d sat there in silence for few minutes. The sun had already set and it was getting quite cold, but neither of them wanted to move just yet.

“How I want to be your guardian,” Otabek answered with all honesty, pressing his nose softly to Yuri’s golden locks. “I want to stay by your side and make sure no one will ever hurt you.”

“You’re so stupid,” Yuri muttered, but Otabek heard a hint of satisfaction in his voice. “I’m a witch, I’m more than capable of taking care of both of us. Besides, don’t you have a family to return to?”

“I do, but I won’t go back if you don’t come with me.”

Yuri went silent for a minute. Just when Otabek thought he wasn’t going to say anything, he opened his mouth. “I want to live here. But I can visit you sometimes, if you want me to.”

Otabek inhaled sharply, the smell of Yuri’s hair filling his nose. “I want you.”

Yuri hummed, and they stayed still for a few more minutes. It wasn’t until Otabek begun shivering in the old night that Yuri demanded they both should move inside. They drank some tea before going to bed, Otabek’s heart leaping out of his chest when the smaller boy climbed between his sheets without saying a word, placing his face against Otabek’s chest before instantly falling asleep.

As Otabek stared at the dark ceiling, he thought to himself how the mission couldn’t have been more successful.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked this!
> 
> I have a Tumblr if anyone is interested, you can find it [here](https://lonesome-writer.tumblr.com/)


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